March 7, 2013

Heath Cupcakes with Salted Caramel Frosting

Whenever I go to Dairy Queen
(which is only, like, once or twice per year), I always treat myself to a Heath
Blizzard. I’ve tried the other flavors,
but they just don’t satisfy like Heath!
There’s just something about the toffee and the chocolate that makes me
swoon!

Since I’ve exhausted the
toffee cookies (for now), I decided it was time to stick that toffee into a
cupcake!

The cupcake is the rich
chocolate cake recipe, only with toffee bits added in, the topped off with an
amazing salted caramel frosting and more Heath.

The cupcakes are super
delicious and very indulgent! I’d plan
to take these somewhere where there are lots of people to eat them up, because
the leftovers are waaaay tempting!

Recipe Notes

*In the baking aisle at my local grocery store, I was able to
find Heath bits. If you can’t find
these, check the candy bar section for Heath bars, and crush them yourself (you’ll
need about 5)

Heath Cupcakes with Salted Caramel Frosting

Cake

1 box
Devil’s Food Cake Mix

1
(3.9 oz) package instant chocolate pudding mix

1 cup
(8 oz) sour cream

1 cup
canola oil

4
eggs

1
tbsp special dark cocoa powder

2 tsp
pure vanilla extract

1
tbsp instant espresso granules

½ cup
warm water

1 cup
Heath Pieces

Frosting

1 (8
oz) package cream cheese, softened

½ cup
unsalted butter, softened

1 tsp
vanilla extract

1/3
cup caramel sauce (I used ice cream topping)

½ tsp
salt

4 ¼
cups powdered sugar

2
heath bars, broken

Preheat
the oven to 350 degrees F. Place paper liners into two muffin tins or
spray two 8-inch pans with non-stick spray.

Stir
together the warm water and the instant espresso, until the espresso is
dissolved.

Add
the espresso mixture, along with all of the remaining ingredients into the bowl
of a stand mixer. Beat for 2 minutes on medium speed until smooth and
well combined. Stir in the heath
bits. The mixture will be thick and
pudding-like.Fill each
cupcake liner about 2/3 full with batter and bake for 22-25 minutes.
Cool the cupcakes completely before icing.

To
make the frosting, place the cream cheese and butter into the bowl of a stand
mixer. Beat on medium speed until smooth
and combined. Stir in the vanilla,
caramel, and salt.

Turn
the speed to low. Mix in 3 ½ cups of
powdered sugar, beating until smooth and combined. Slowly add the remaining sugar until the
desired consistency is achieved.